This much is for sure: In the coming weeks, NBA front office denizens from coast to coast will spend time digesting the season that was. They will tell those of us in the fourth estate that they’re considering all options, that they’ll be out to make the right decisions for the future of the franchise in question. And then heads will roll. Maybe a lot of them.

Coming into the wind-up of this season, an exceptional number of coaches find themselves on the hot seat—there are nine whose job security is at least tenuous, if not outright eroded. Not all nine will be gone, of course, but it’s safe to assume that there will be more open jobs than usual this offseason. And with a limited number of potential candidates out there, the scramble for coaches figures to be fast and intense.

Byron Scott is 64-160 in three years as coach in Cleveland, despite having a future star in Kyrie Irving. (AP Photo)

Potentially in the market:

Bucks. What had been a promising start for Milwaukee under interim coach Jim Boylan (they were 8-3 in his first 11 games) has gone sour, with the Bucks losing 11 of their past 16 games and Boylan clashing with point guard Brandon Jennings. Boylan was brought on to replace Scott Skiles, and the Bucks might have been inclined to keep him, but the team’s late swoon should mean they’ll look elsewhere.

Suns. When the team hired Lindsey Hunter as an assistant last offseason, the presumption was that he would be groomed for the head coaching job, which he was given on an interim basis after Alvin Gentry was removed. That could still be the plan in Phoenix, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that Hunter has gone 10-27 as the coach of the Suns, and that they’ve lost 14 of their last 15.

Hawks. Larry Drew has been the most successful Hawks coach since Lenny Wilkens, and will lead his Hawks into the playoffs for the third straight season. But with new general manager Danny Ferry trying to remake the franchise, Drew’s days could be numbered. His contract runs out at the end of the season, and Ferry could look to pluck someone from the Spurs’ coaching tree—he hired Mike Brown in Cleveland, remember, and could either turn to Brown or try to pry Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer away from Gregg Popovich.

Cavaliers. Byron Scott has been nonchalant when it comes to his future in Cleveland, but speculation is rampant that he will not be retained after the season. Scott walked into the impossible job of coaching the Cavs post-LeBron, and he has forged a good relationship with star guard Kyrie Irving. But with the Cavs having gone 64-161 in three seasons with Scott, the team might seek a change.

Clippers. Yes, LA has clinched its first Pacific Division crown. The reward for Vinny Del Negro could be a pink slip. Del Negro has been on the hot seat almost since his arrival, and with his contract up this year, the Clippers are expected to seek out a bigger name. Del Negro could coach his way into keeping the job by leading the Clippers deep into the playoffs, but if that does not happen, the team will make a change. It has a big free-agent pitch to make to point guard Chris Paul, and he will likely have some say in picking the next coach.

Pistons. Lawrence Frank’s name has come up in connection with the vacancy at Rutgers, which would bring him closer to his home in New Jersey. Frank said he hasn’t had any contact with the school, but should he leave the Pistons, the team will be looking for its seventh coach in the past decade.

Kings. With players expressing their dismay over Keith Smart’s rotations and the Kings on their way to the lottery for the seventh straight year, Smart would normally be on an exceedingly hot seat. But the Kings don’t yet know who their owner will be or what city they’ll be playing in next year, and they might not get that answer at the Board of Governors meeting this month. Because so many big things are unsettled, Smart might skate by and have another crack at the job next season, the final year on his contract. But if a decision on the franchise’s future is made quickly, the Kings’ new owners will have time to make a coaching change.

Lakers. They wouldn’t … right? The bet here is that, no, the Lakers won’t fire Mike D’Antoni this year, even if the team misses the playoffs. Team president Jim Buss made the call on D’Antoni’s hiring and his credibility would be further sapped by a quick hook on a guy to whom he gave a three-year, $12 million deal in November. But it’s not hard to imagine a scenario in which free-agent-to-be Dwight Howard nudges the team into firing D’Antoni before he agrees to re-sign, forcing the Lakers to take on a new coach for the fourth straight year.

Nets. We have the Nets on the list simply because P.J. Carlesimo is still an interim coach. It would be a surprise if Brooklyn did not give Carlesimo a long-term deal, but if the Nets go into the postseason and flop badly, Carlesimo’s future could suddenly become cloudy. Brooklyn has gone 31-18 under Carlesimo and the players seem to like him, so it’s his job to lose.